Forest of Light
by The Lightning Phoenix
Summary: When Nick decides to become a private investigator instead of a cop, things are slow going. It isn't until he receives a mysterious phone call, denoting his very first case, that things become interesting. With a mysterious group trying to incite chaos in the illustrious Zootopia, he and Judy partner up once more. Who knew they'd uncover more about each other than the actual case?
1. Prologue

**Forest of Light**

 _by The Lightning Phoenix_

 _Prologue_

* * *

It was dark. The soft, warm light of a rather subdued lamp was all that lit the dark city apartment, casting shadows here and there. Heavy rain fell outside, the soothing sound of it causing droopy eyelids to close further as sleep beckoned the red fox that sat slumped on the desk. With emerald eyes barely visible, cheeks embedded by the paws they were resting on; Nick Wilde would surely have lost consciousness had he not been waiting for something important. Well, possibly important. Probably not. But the scribbled writing on his flyer had been the first sign in months that someone had possibly needed the assistance of his newly-found private investigation agency.

In a moment of spontaneity at the time, the idea had occurred to him. After much thought, he had decided he didn't want to become a police officer after all, but at the same time didn't want to sacrifice the possibility of working with the enthusiastically energetic Judy Hopps on the tough cases like the Night Howler incident. Thus birthed the idea of working as a private investigator. It was somewhat classier, which gave the somewhat eccentric fox a warm feeling at the thought of being one. The best part was that the Chief actually gave him permission to work beside the bunny on cases where she 'thought' she may need outside assistance.

Not long after, he had spawned his one-fox agency and began to advertise on the reputation he had built through the Night Howler case. Things had been slow going, with most of his work being assisting Judy whenever possible in the hopes of reliving that intense feeling of mystery and curiosity he had when they solved the case together - but to no avail. They were all small jobs, sometimes house calls even, but nothing ever turned out to be some big mystery that needed to be cracked. _That_ was where all the fun was... at least according to the _private investigator._ Judy always told him how irresponsible it was to think like that, that it was all about _"protecting_ _the citizens_ ". Nick had promptly told her that for that reason he became a private investigator instead of a cop because they were _"too_ _strict for a free soul like me_." Despite trying to argue her case, she couldn't deny that she had felt strong feelings of enjoyment whilst solving the Night Howler case, also.

Sometime after that, Nick managed to get an official permit for detective work and after some strict training and assessments with the help of Judy and the Chief, was given a licence to carry a firearm. Judy herself received her service firearm after the case and was the one to convince Bogo to give Nick one as well as thanks for the help on it. He said he really didn't need it, at least not yet, but Judy made him take it just in case he had a job that might compromise his safety. He made it seem like it was difficult to accept, but in reality, Nick was ecstatic at the prospect of having a gun, one of the hardest to get items in Zootopia. He did show it off to Finnick as well, just to rub it in as payback for making fun of him when Judy 'hustled' him. Which, of course, became a somewhat more important visit when the fennec fox told him about the scrawled time and date that he happened upon when looking at one of Nick's flyers - right under the public number he had advertised with it.

That note was what kept the somnolent fox from falling asleep, despite the late hour, under the gamble that someone would call about a case at that specific time. The fact that he hadn't been approached and that he hadn't just received a call led him to believe there might be some deeper mystery, despite realistically being little chance of such. But anything was better than sitting around, doing nothing. With a yawn, Nick looked up from his paws over to the clock on his wall. _2:35 AM, only a minute away now,_ he thought as he straightened in his chair and cracked his aching spine. _I really shouldn't sit in a chair like this for so long._ He slowly stood, walking over to the kettle he had just boiled before pouring himself a cup of tea. When he had finished, he walked back over to his desk and cast his gaze on the clock again. _2:36 AM._ He sat down and chuckled as he took a sip of his tea, reminding himself that it could, and probably would be nothing. _Who even makes a time like 2:36 in the flippin' morning?_ Nick asked himself, rolling his eyes for taking it so seriously. But just as he slumped into the desk chair and took another sip, his ears pricked up at the sound of his phone's ringtone.

His eyes widened as he looked up, watching his phone vibrate for a moment before his mind got into gear and he scrambled for it, spilling hot tea on himself in the process before finally answering and holding it to his ear.

"Hello?" he asked, tentatively, silently hoping it wasn't some prank.

" _Yes, hello? Is this Mr Wilde?"_

"Speaking," he answered. "I would assume you're the one who wrote on my flyer?"

" _Yes, indeed. Now, I haven't much time, so I'll need you to get a notepad and pen and write down everything I say."_

"Uh, yeah, of course," Nick answered. "Now, um, uh, is this some sort of case you'd like me to investigate?" he asked as he put the phone between his cheek and shoulder as he worked through a pile of books, finding a notepad and a pen nearby.

" _Yes, in fact, I've been investigating these guys for a while now... but it's now to the point that I can't further it without putting myself and my family at risk. I've decided to move us out of the city, which is why I couldn't meet with you in person. I didn't know if anyone was watching, either, so I had to be sure I didn't cripple your efforts before even having started."  
_

"Right," Nick answered absent-mindedly, unable to think straight as he tried to process the information he'd just received. "So, uh, what exactly is the case?"

" _I used to be a small-time detective, and I received a tip on this case when it was just a small thing, but it's grown into something so much bigger. There's a syndicate of sorts – a cult, even – and they've recently seen the Night Howler incident as a motivator. I think they want to try and abolish the system that makes up the city, somewhat similarly to Dawn Bellwether. Are you writing this down?"_

"What? O-Oh, yes," Nick answered, beginning to write down on his pad. "So, what have you found out before now, and what leads should I be pursuing?"

" _It'll take a while to write down, but I have all my case files here for you. Are you ready?"_

"Go ahead."

* * *

Exhausted, Nick collapsed backwards onto his bed, glad he could finally get some rest. Letting out a yawn, he looked over at the alarm clock on his bedside table. _3:30 AM._ He let out a groan, but couldn't deny the warm feeling building inside of him as he smiled. He had a case. And what seemed like a big one, too. Yet any worries he might have had were drowned in his happiness as he just laid there and listened to the rain that continued to hit his roof. _And to think, I might've still been a popsicle hustler..._ He chuckled at the thought. But his laughter soon died as he thought hard for a moment. Had Judy not come into his dull, monotonous life, he would still be dead inside like he had for so many years.

 _I should thank her,_ he thought. Considering she was his only close friend – the first _real_ friend he'd ever had – he needed to do something for her. Especially considering how he'd treated her when they first met. Just thinking back to that made him feel terrible. _I'll take her out for dinner. Somewhere really... nice. I suppose I can certainly afford it now,_ he thought, thinking back to what the mysterious caller had said about his pay.

" _Now, regarding your pay, you'll receive what I got. $200 a day until the case is solved. As for where it comes from, let's just say that there are quite a few people onto this who don't want an event like the Night Howler incident to happen again, and as such all of them put in towards it. And don't be too surprised... there's a lot of us."_

Although he was incredibly tired, Nick somehow managed to think about what his first steps would be. _Tomorrow, I'll head into the ZPD and see if I can have a chat with Bogo about this, whether or not he's heard of it. If I'm lucky, I might even get Judy on the case with me,_ he thought as he smiled. Of course, that was what changed him for the better; the work he and Judy did together to solve the Night Howler case. A "hidden passion", Judy called it. _Well, you're certainly right about that, Carrots,_ he thought with a chuckle. After laying on his back for a few more moments, Nick finally decided to get some sleep and went and got ready.

A short while later, he returned to his bed and jumped under the covers, his weary consciousness barely being maintained by his excitement for the next day, almost as if he were a kid waiting for their birthday to come. But soon enough, his consciousness faded as he fell into a deep, comfortable sleep, unaware of what was to come.


	2. Chapter One

**Chapter One**

* * *

Nick looked up at his ceiling in a stuporous state, blinking a few times as he woke. He yawned loudly as he turned in his bed onto his side, pulling the covers into him more. He laid there for a few moments more, unable to move from the serene comfort of his warm bed, before eventually turning his head to his alarm clock. _10:40 AM._ He let out another yawn as he threw the covers off himself, knowing it to be the only way he could leave his bed, before sitting up and rubbing his eyes. _"_ Better go get ready _,"_ he murmured to himself as he stood and shuffled his way to the kitchen.

He grabbed his kettle and poured out the old water and filled it up again, letting out another yawn as he did. _Now that I'm employed, I won't be able to have such late nights anymore,_ he thought, looking over to his clothes on his desk whilst waiting for the kettle to boil. He walked over to them before holding up the light-green Hawaiian shirt and the red and blue striped necktie, letting out a sigh as he did. "We had a good run," he told them before setting them down. "You shall always remind me of my past mistakes, and the lackadaisical nature that permanently resides within me." A ding from behind him told Nick that the kettle had finished boiling and he put them down as he walked away from the desk, bringing with him his cup of tea that he didn't manage to finish the night before. He tipped it out and put the mug in the sink before he grabbed another from his cupboard, setting it down and beginning to make another cup of tea.

After realising that his attire would need to change once he actually had jobs to work on as a private eye, Nick had picked out some things in advance. He'd picked a tie first, so he needed to pick a shirt that went well with the tie, which happened to be a black slim tie. The shirt he'd picked was a plain white long-sleeved shirt with buttons and to go with that, he'd picked out a thin, tight-fitting black jacket. As for pants, he just grabbed the most comfortable looking pair of black pants. It has cost him a bit, considering it was all made from high-quality material, but he thought it was worth it. Might as well be comfortable and looking snazzy at the same time, he'd reasoned.

As he took a sip from his tea, Nick sat down and opened up his laptop, reaching for a small case that was sitting on his desk. _I'll be damned if Judy ever sees me with these on,_ he thought to himself as he put his glasses on and opened up to the document he had put all of his notes in. As a fox, Nick had incredible eyesight, as well as night vision, but with such acute sight, it could damage his eyes if he looked at a light-producing screen for too long without his glasses. But after a moment of staring blankly at the screen, he muttered aloud, "What the hell am I doing?" He didn't know where to begin. _It_ _'_ _s too damn early to be figuring out a plan._ Promptly shutting his laptop, Nick put his glasses back in their case as he took another sip of his tea, leaving the desk to go get changed. A short while later, he returned in his new attire and downed the rest of his tea quickly before eyeing the box that sat on the floor by his desk.

 _Should I put it on?_

He walked over to the box before picking it up and opening it, revealing a nicely laid out revolver and holster. The holster was the sort that was worn around the chest and drawn from under the shoulder. After taking a moment to decide, Nick slowly took his jacket off and put the holster on. He took a moment to adjust all the straps so that it sat comfortably before he put his jacket back on and picked up the revolver. Nick couldn't help but admire it momentarily before swiftly putting it into his holster, happy that Judy had picked out such a nice revolver for him. He was about to pack the box up before he realised he would need some ammunition in the gun, so he grabbed the box of cartridges before loading six of them into it, swiftly snapping the cylinder back in place and returning the gun to its holster.

After placing the box back on the floor, he stood up and walked over to the door, grabbing his keys, wallet, phone, and a small notepad on the way, before opening the door and walking into the hallway of his apartment building. He shut the door and locked it, continuing on down the hallway until he reached the entrance, stepping out into the cold. Living in the city centre, on the outskirts right where tundratown and the rainforest district were, he ended up getting some pretty cold weather most of the time, which often resulted in the numerous puddles scattered around. As he crossed the street, he looked down into one such puddle, and for a moment he just stood there, frozen, as his eyes widened and his jaw dropped. _Holy shit,_ he thought, his lips curling into a smile. _I look badass._

* * *

"Is that all for today, Clawhauser?"

The cheetah, with an assortment of donuts and files in front of him on the front desk of the ZPD, shook his head. "Nuh-uh, I think the Chief wanted you to, uh... what was it again?" he asked himself, scratching his head as he loudly took a sip from his bottle of soft drink, which seemed to be a persistent habit of his. "Oh! That's it! He wanted you to look over some cold cases and see if you can make anything of them," he answered after a moment.

"Really?" the rabbit asked with a groan, and he nodded. "I'm not some prodigious detective; I'm not going to be able to discern anything more than what the other officers could," Judy told him, letting out a sigh of exasperation. "Jeez, ever since cracking the Night Howler case two months ago it seems everyone has these ridiculously high expectations of me. And I definitely couldn't have done it alone, so what's even the point?"

"Well, why don't you ask him to give you a hand?" Clawhauser asked, and Judy looked at him in disbelief.

"Nick? Why?" she asked. "He's got better things to worry about than reading through stale, boring case files. I doubt he'd even be awake yet, either."

"You sure? Why don't you just ask him now?" he asked her, gesturing with his eyes to behind her. She turned and followed his gaze to see Nick walking towards them from the entrance. He caught her eye and smiled as she walked over to him.

"Hey Carrots, you busy?" he asked. She was about to respond but found herself lacking the words, blinking profusely in disbelief.

"Why, even, are you dressed like that?" she asked blankly, shaking her head with incredulity.

" _I_ just got my first case," he told her, his usual wide smile plastered on his face with his usual lazily half-shut eyes. "So I thought gee, I better look pretty suave from now on."

"Well, I suppose you are looking rather reputable for once, especially considering your dress sense," she replied. "Rather, complete lack thereof," she added with a jesting smile.

"Excuse me, I'll have you know I only pick the finest of Hawaiian shirts," he responded in defence, only receiving silence in return as she rolled her eyes.

"Anyway, what brings you here? Actually, don't answer that, it's to do with your case, isn't it?" she asked.

"What?" Nick asked. "I need a reason to visit-"

"Don't even," she interrupted. "I have some stuff to do, so unless you have something important to discuss, I'll have to be on my way."

"Gee, that was harsh," he murmured as he let out a sigh, deciding he'd toyed with her enough already. "Alright, I do have something important to discuss regarding my case, and it's something we shouldn't be taking lightly. Yes, I know that may sound a little hypocritical but for now, I need to talk to the Chief."

"The Chief? What for?" she asked.

"I'll need his permission for you to join me, of course," he told her and she let out a sigh.

"Nick, I told you, I'll only be able to work with you if it's deemed a police matter," she said. "Besides, it'd have to be pretty hardcore for Bogo to spare me from any work," she told him.

"Judy," he began, his voice suddenly laced with an uncharacteristic seriousness, causing the rabbit to listen intently – especially at the use of her first name. "This is big. Probably even bigger than the Night Howlers."

"You really think so?" she asked, her voice slightly quieter. He nodded.

"And I can guarantee Bogo will let you on the case with me."

"How?" she asked, still sceptical.

"Because he already knows about it and has no idea how he's going to solve the problem," he told her. "Now, can you fetch him? I'd like to get this done as soon as possible because I have to get back for something tonight."

She scoffed. "Ha, and what exactly is that?"

"I'm going out for dinner," he told her.

"Right. With who, yourself?" she asked with a smirk.

"With you, actually," he announced guilelessly. He saw the confusion on her face after a moment and he decided to digress, swallowing hard before continuing. "You see, it occurred to me that I hadn't yet thanked you for, uh... helping me out... so I thought, well, I need to. So there. Are you free tonight?"

Judy stared blankly for a moment, trying to comprehend what he was doing. "Uh... yeah, I guess, but what exactly did I help you with?" she asked, still slightly confused.

"Well, I'll tell you tonight, then," he replied. "And we can discuss the details later, but for now, can you _please_ get Bogo? Else I'll forget what I've got on my mind."

Judy stared at him for another moment before deciding to just accept it, letting out a sigh. "Alright." She turned around, strolling back towards to the front desk with Nick in tow. "Clawhauser, where's the Chief?" she asked the cheetah as he turned to her in his chair.

"The Chief?" he asked and she nodded. "I think he's reviewing something for the time being, so I don't know if he'll be happy to stop, Hopps."

"That's fine, could you please tell him that it's urgent?" she asked.

"Alright, I'll see what I can do," he replied, moving over to the communicator. Nick turned to Judy with a smile on his face.

"See? That wasn't too hard," he murmured and she rolled her eyes.

"She says it's urgent, and I'm pretty sure she wouldn't say that without a good reason," they heard Clawhauser reply into the communicator, who then continued, "alright, thanks Chief." He turned back to the two of them with a smile. "Head on up."

* * *

"Now, what was so important for you to interrupt me while I am working?" Bogo asked the pair that sat in front of his desk.

"Well, sir, Nick has told me he's been hired as a detective for a rather concerning case, and thought it would be a good idea to let you know what is going on, and whether or not I can partner with him on the case," Judy explained as she silently hoped that the Chief wouldn't just blatantly refuse, only to be surprised to find his eyes narrow as he turned to Nick.

"So, what's this case, fox?" Bogo asked him directly and instead of smiling charismatically, Nick returned the Chief's stare as he responded.

"There is a group of animals, made up of many species of predators and prey alike, under the name 'Enigma', who are conspiring to destroy Zootopia and its societal structure," Nick began, causing Judy's eyes to widen. "They have been smuggling drugs and weapons for the last few months, with which they plan to use to incite a civil war of sorts and tear the city apart. When that's done, they're going to use fear and manipulation to drive all predators and prey to return to what they were in the days of old: predator and prey. They don't like the way the world is now; they think it's wrong, and they want to return it to the way it was 'created'." After a moment of silence, he quietly continued, "and the reason you haven't been asking me for evidence or even rejected me already is the simple fact that you've already known about some of these for a while, haven't you, Chief?" he then asked, causing Judy to turn her gaze back to the buffalo, who let out a sigh.

"Yes," Bogo muttered, surprising Judy. "We've had... some evidence stipulating such, and an investigation was made regarding the issue but no leads were found. You think you can find something? Alright." After that, the Chief turned to Judy. "Effective immediately, you are officially part of this investigation," he told her and instantly the rabbit's eyes were wide with enthusiasm.

"Really!?" she exclaimed.

"Really," he responded flatly. "And if you had read through the cold cases like I'd asked you to, you would have noticed that this was one of them. Though, I do suppose I should be grateful for this turn of events. Report back to me if you find anything, but if you don't have any leads in a week, I'll need you to return to work."

"Understood, sir," Judy replied with a smile. "Shall I go and get the case file from Clawhauser?" she asked, but before Bogo could reply Nick cut in.

"Actually, I have everything, sans permission to leave and get on with it," he said, turning to face Bogo.

"Well, get on with it then," Bogo told him as he got up and walked over to the door and deftly opened it. "I have work to do, so how about you leave me alone and make some progress?"

Nick smiled.

"With pleasure."


	3. Chapter Two

**Chapter Two**

* * *

As Judy laid on her bed, staring up at her ceiling, she found herself wondering what she'd managed to do for Nick to make him want to thank her. After a few moments more, she gave up and groaned as she rolled over and plunged her head deep into her pillow. Then she smiled stupidly as a sense of euphoria surged through her at the thought of working on another mystery with him. Granted, it had been tough and there had been ups and downs, but she wouldn't have had it any other way. She remembered when she had forced him into working with her, as well as the look on his face that had followed, and she giggled at the thought before her laughs faded. _I need to get ready,_ she thought, looking over at her alarm clock. It was 4:30 PM and Nick said that he would meet her out the front of her apartment at 5:00 PM before promptly asking for her address. After that, he'd just left her at the ZPD without as much as a hint as to where they would be going. _'I'm wearing these, just don't be to_ _o_ _formal or too casual,'_ he'd told her. She rolled her eyes. _That's very helpful, Nic_ _k_ _._

She lulled in her bed for another moment or two before she jumped up and got to it, already having an idea about what she was going to wear.

* * *

As Nick stood outside in wait, he smiled at the thought of a nice meal. The last few meals he ate consisted of instant noodles, toasted sandwiches, and... that was it. Nicholas Wilde did not have a very good diet, nor was he a good cook. He could make a damn good popsicle, though. _I should try and learn to cook,_ he thought, an inquisitive glare on his face as he stared at nothing in particular until the sound of the door behind him brought him out of his thoughts and he turned to see Judy walk towards him with a smile.

"Took your time, Carrots," he murmured with a smirk as he held up his wrist and tapped his watch. "It's 5:01."

"I'm actually surprised that _you_ were here on time," she told him as she looked around. "Where's your car?" she asked, but he only continued smirking as he began to walk. "We're walking?"

"We're not far; it's only a short stroll," he replied. "Besides, walking is better than driving when you're in a big city. Too much traffic to have any fun."

"Do you even have a car?" she asked but he just shrugged.

"It's not like I need one," he replied. "You should ask if you can do police work in casual attire sometimes because that outfit looks ten times more comfortable than your uniform," he told her as he stopped at the crossing, waiting for the light to go green.

"The uniform is a symbol; it doesn't _need_ to be comfortable," she argued, despite enjoying the feeling of being in such nice clothes. She was wearing a shirt similar to Nick's: a plain white long-sleeved buttoned shirt, only with the sleeves rolled up and a pair of beige slim jeans.

"Oh yeah?" Nick asked. "Say that to _Batram_."

She rolled her eyes before realising where they were near. "Hold on," she began, looking around. "We wouldn't happen to be going to the Firefly, would we?" she asked.

"The one and only," he replied, continuing to look ahead.

"What!?" Judy exclaimed, causing Nick to smile a little. "I don't have the money to eat at a place like that."

"Well, I suppose that's alright then, considering you're not paying," he told her nonchalantly as he began to cross the road, leaving her in a stupor as she watched him move. She realised that she wasn't moving with him and quickly caught up to him, shaking her head to clear it.

"You don't have to do this, Nick, I don't even know what you want to thank me for," she started, still trying to understand what she'd done for him. All she could think of was blackmailing him into helping her solve the case.

"We're just going to a restaurant, that's all there is to it," he replied simply.

"Yeah, like the most expensive restaurant in the whole city!"

"So what? It's a nice place and I wanted to see what the view's like at some point, no need to get so worked up," he told her, chuckling lightly.

"Yes, but..." she continued, only to let out a sigh. _I'm not going to change his mind no matter what I do,_ she thought, still surprised by her inability to understand any of the red fox's motivations. "Whatever, but did you make a reservation? The regular floor has a huge waiting list, apparently."

"That won't be an issue," Nick muttered simply as they both walked down the street and Judy looked up to see the building in question, shooting high into the sky above them. It was a tall spire, with no middle floors; only a lobby, the restaurant itself, and further business levels high in the sky, situated at the very top of the spire in a bright ball of light. After admiring it for a moment, Judy and Nick walked through the revolving door of the Firefly before being greeted by a horse, who seemed to be the host.

"Your reservation, Sir?" the horse asked and Nick smiled as he walked up to the counter.

"Nick Wilde," he announced, and the host took a moment to type into his computer.

"Right this way, Mr. Wilde," he said as he stood, walking them to a nearby elevator off to the side.

"Wait," Judy began, looking between this elevator and the one in the centre of the lobby. "Isn't that one over there the main entrance?"

"That is the elevator for the main restaurant, yes, but that is not where your reservation is," the host replied. "This elevator leads to the second floor of the restaurant." Judy didn't know what to feel or say, so she decided to just keep her mouth shut as the two of them entered the elevator. "Please enjoy your meal." With that, the door closed and the elevator began moving upwards.

Judy slowly turned her head to Nick, who had already taken it upon himself to lean on the railing and stare out of the glass elevator towards the city, which had begun to light up the night sky. She allowed herself to stare at him, trying to understand him, unsure of how to feel. "You didn't happen to win some prize or something to get up here?" she asked, despite knowing the answer.

"No."

"Isn't this expensive?" she continued.

"I suppose so, but I don't really care," he told her as he turned around. "Stop fussing so much and just enjoy the view." She was about to reply, but one look at what was behind him made her shut her mouth, only to have it open again in awe.

"Wow..." she trailed off, stunned by the beauty of the warm orange glow that was the sunset. Lights were abundant and incandescent, eagerly glowing and setting the city ablaze with colour. Even in their insignificant independence, as a group, the lights were very much a warming spectacle.

"Hey, Carrots, we're here," Nick's voice cut into her daydream, causing her to fumble for a moment before stepping out of the elevator. "Nick Wilde," he continued, talking to another host in front of him who'd asked for his reservation.

"Right this way," the host replied, walking over to a door labelled, '42'. "Your menus are on the table and a waiter will come soon to take your orders," he told them as he held open the door, waiting as they entered before he gave a bow and left the room.

As Judy looked around, she felt another sense of awe. In front of them there was a set table and to the side, there was a window that opened up to the main floor of the restaurant below them. Another window opened up to the city and the sky. "You gonna sit and look at the menu or are you just gonna walk around?"

"I've never been here before," Judy replied in defence as she turned to Nick, who was already sitting down, scouring the menu. "I'm just looking around," she said before she walked over to the table and sat. "By the way, Nick, did you really need to get a private room?"

Without looking up, he replied, "I don't like being around so many people. This is much nicer, anyway. And before you ask, the silence is _absolutely_ worth it."

"Huh," Judy murmured aloud, honestly surprised. "I'd pegged you as a more outgoing person, but I suppose not so much."

"Maybe, but if you're thinking along the lines of a people person, definitely not," he told her with a smile as he put down his menu. There was a bit of silence for a moment until Judy spoke up.

"Nick... what did you want to thank me for?"

The red fox looked at her for a moment before letting out a sigh. "I guess you're only going to keep bugging me at this point," he murmured and she nodded. "Well, I guess I'll get right to it then: I'm sure it goes without saying, but I was quite the horrible person to you when we met. To anyone in general, in fact. And you put up with it and somehow managed to get through to me. Whether or not it was the fact that I enjoy solving mysteries and puzzles that helped, you got me out of the horrendous depression I found myself in. Without any real purpose or aspirations, I was swayed by the easy life of a hustler. And... well... I'm sure you're wondering what the reason for my depression was in the first place, aren't you Carrots?"

"I take it that his wasn't what happened to you when you were eight or nine, right?" Judy asked and he let out another sigh.

"I got angry at the things that happened in my life, which was why I was fed up and just wanted the easy life of a hustler," he murmured. "Doing something so... useless... was what caused me become so callous and cynical. Well, on top of the racial prejudice I was faced with at such a young age. And the things in my life that happened, well..."

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, Nick," she told him. "The last thing I want is for you to be pressured into telling me things you're uncomfortable with."

"Uncomfortable or not, these things need to be told to someone, Judy," he told her. "It's... draining; not being able to talk to anyone about it, I guess." She looked up at him and gave him a smile and instantly Nick felt more at ease. "If I delay this any longer, I'll end up not being able to tell you, so I'll just go ahead and say it. When I was too young to remember, my father left us. He took with him almost all of our money and cost us our house, causing my mother to work tirelessly just to put food on the table, let alone pay rent. She was a nurse. She was working both day and night shifts, barely resting, only coming home to feed me and take care of any household tasks until I was old enough to do it myself.

"Eventually, I found out how hard she was working and I wanted to help her somehow. So, I read up on things like hustling, unbeknownst of the path it would set me on until my mother found out and told me I couldn't be doing that sort of stuff. She reminded me of what happened with the ranger scouts and what people would truly think that of me if I continued, so, we had a falling out, because my image wasn't as important to me anymore as was helping her out. I ran away when I was about twelve, continued making money with the intent to return with enough to buy us a house until I found out in the local newspaper..." he trailed off, suddenly finding it hard to breathe. He swallowed hard before taking a deep breath and looking up to Judy once more. "I found out that she'd been involved in an incident with a druggie, who'd stabbed her with a needle. Shortly afterward, she'd contracted HIV, and has been permanently hospitalised ever since. I'm sure I don't need to tell you, but foxes have terrible, if not the worst, immune systems out of almost every mammal in Zootopia. Couple that with a disease like HIV... the slightest common cold would kill her. And the worst part... is that I've _still_ never visited her once..."

He trailed off that last sentence with such a desolate look on his face that it made Judy seriously worried. "I don't know what to say," she said, barely containing her sadness at his plight. But with resolve, she managed to solidify herself to say what needed to be said. "Nick, you need to go see her. You know you're never going to fully recover from that kind of traumatic past unless you do."

"I... I know, Carrots," he murmured, finding himself in a state of disbelief. _I actually... told someone..._

"If you'd like, I can even go with you?" Judy suggested, watching as he disconsolately sat there in silence. Another few moments passed before the fox spoke up.

"Yeah... that sounds like a good idea," he said as there was a knock on the door. The two of them look over at it before Nick turned back to her and continued, now smiling, "But there's no need to dwell on this any longer. Let's just enjoy the time here and have something nice, yeah?" he asked, and she nodded as she smiled in return.

"You're right," she replied. "We don't need to talk about this now. Come in," she then called, and a waiter entered the room.

"Are you ready to order?" he asked, and Judy nodded.

"I'll have the cauliflower and cheese soup, thanks," she told him, and he nodded as the moose wrote down her order.

"Of course, ma'am. Your order, Sir?" he then asked, turning to Nick.

"I'll have the smoked salmon with mashed potato and vegetables, thanks," he responded and the moose nodded. "Oh, and can I please get the pumpkin roasted, please?"

"Of course," he replied. "Any drinks?" he then asked, and Nick turned to Judy.

"I don't suppose you like wine, do you?" he asked her.

"Depends, but I don't really feel like wine right now," Judy responded. "Maybe a lemon, lime, and bitters if you have it, please?" she asked, and the waiter nodded.

"And you, Sir?"

"I'll still have a glass of your finest white, thanks," Nick told him and the waiter nodded.

"They'll be here shortly. Please, do enjoy your evening." With that, the moose left the room. Judy looked at Nick skeptically.

"White wine? Really?" she asked him.

"What?" he asked in defence. "I barely ever have any alcohol, let alone white wine," he murmured before he let out a sigh and looked down, instantly losing his cheeky demeanour. "Carrots... I'm not happy."

"Well, Nick, anyone in your situation would be feeling like that-"

"Trust me, this feeling has nothing to do with what I've just told you," he interrupted her, causing her to become confused. He realised he should elaborate before she started to tell him otherwise. "Look, I've had this feeling, like this sort of emptiness inside me for almost my entire life.'

"What if..." Judy began but then trailed off, deciding it was better to not say it. _Besides, it's highly unlikely, anyway._

"What if what?" he asked, but she shook her head.

"Oh, it's nothing, continue on."

"Alright then... well anyway, for a brief moment during the Night Howler case, it vanished. Poof, completely," he told her, making an explosive movement with his hands. "But, it's back, and I'm hoping that this case might be able to get rid of it for longer, if not forever."

"Well, what do you think it could be?" she asked and Nick seemed to stop for a moment. He swallowed quickly before continuing.

"I'm not sure for now, but I'll just have to wait and see," he told her, silently hoping for the topic to change. He was suddenly feeling very awkward and anxious. After a few moments of more silence, there was a knock on the door once more. "Come in," Nick called, almost instantly, and the door opened to reveal the moose with a trolley. He rolled it over to them before placing both of their meals in front of them, including their drinks.

"Enjoy," the waiter said, promptly leaving the two to their meals.

"Wow, this looks great," Judy said, eyes wide. "Well, we can talk a bit later. Let's eat."

"Good idea," Nick replied as he took a deep breath. _That was miraculously well-timed,_ he thought as he tried to calm his beating heart. Anything could've slipped out of his mouth in his flustered condition, no matter how good he was at suppressing himself.

After all, he'd just realised for the first time that Judy could mean more to him than just a close friend.


	4. Chapter Three

**Chapter Three**

* * *

It was raining again outside Nick's apartment, which offered him at least its soothing rumble to help him think straight. It was nearly nine o'clock, with dinner having finished up around about eight, but Nick still had the meal on his mind. Rather, what he'd suddenly found himself thinking during their conversation. Just the thought of it made his breathing escalate. _I really did think that for a moment, didn't I?_ Nick asked himself as he laid on his back on his bed, staring out at the rain that steadily dripped down his window.

During the dinner, Nick had found himself thinking about something regarding his feeling of emptiness. That was, what if it wasn't emptiness, but loneliness? What if it had masqueraded as something else entirely because he didn't want to face the fact that he needed and wanted friends, especially after what happened with his ' _friends'_ of the ranger scouts troop? But Nick knew it was more than that. He didn't really ever have any friends in his life, but now that he thought of it, it wasn't just friends he wanted. In fact, it was more like he only wanted _one_ friend. One good friend to share life with...

A mate.

He let out a groan as he rolled from his back onto his side, curling up to warm himself rather than bothering to get under the covers. It wasn't so much the conclusion that he wanted a mate that made him anxious, but more so what he'd assumed his brief moment of relief during the Night Howler case was caused by. If his assumption was correct, he needed to know whether or not his feelings for Judy were genuine and, if so, whether or not they entailed what he'd assumed. But the more Nick laid there and shot thoughts around his head, he couldn't think of any other logical explanation.

He got up off of his side and sat on the edge of his bed, hunched over and leant his head on his paw, and let out a long, shaky sigh before staring out the window.

 _I've really fallen for you, haven't I?_

* * *

In the morning when Nick woke, he found himself still in his clothes and laying on top of his covers. He groaned, realised he had forgotten to get changed the night previous. _I don't care if this is bad, but at least now I don't have to get changed,_ he thought as he rubbed his eyes.

After dinner last night, Nick had arranged for Judy to meet him at the park in front of the ZPD to discuss what their next move would be on the 'Enigma' case. That's what they'd decided to call it, at least. Though, to Nick, the day was going to be far more stressful than just following a lead, like he'd planned. Now he had to make sure he didn't show Judy any of the feelings he'd only just figured out for himself.

* * *

A short while later, Nick was in front of the ZPD and searching for the rabbit, taking a moment before seeing her sitting on a chair beneath a tree. He casually strolled over to her as he let out a large yawn, rubbing his eyes as he did. Judy looked up and saw him and waved him over with a smile. "Morning," she greeted him cheerfully, and he had to try and refrain from rolling his eyes at her usual optimism. He also had to steel himself, resolving not to let anything... _unprofessional_... show. _This is not the time for emotions, Nicholas. Focus on the case._

"Hey, look at that, you're on time," he murmured sleepily with a smirk.

"I promised I would be," she replied. "Now, have you brought everything with you?"

"Sure did; right here," he told her as he tapped his head. "I thought it was better to memorise everything, rather than have anything on me."

"What? Why? It's not like you're going undercover or anything..." she trailed off slowly before continuing, "... right?" Rather than answering, he gave her an incriminating smirk and she let out a sigh. "Well, I suppose there was probably a good reason for you to ask me to not wear my uniform, but you better fill me in on the gaps."

"Alright, but I'm going to be simplifying things. I'm sure you know already, but I'm incredibly lazy – which also makes me incredibly efficient," he told her and she rolled her eyes.

"You really spare _all_ effort, don't you?" He smirked and raised a brow at her stupid question. "Right. Well, are you going to fill me in simply or what? Let's get on with it, we don't have that long."

"Carrots, you only had forty-eight hours to solve the last case and I was practically stalling you the entire time," he murmured rhetorically.

"Yeah, well, if these guys are as bad as you say they are, then I want to put their plan out of action as soon as possible," she told him.

"It was a joke! Just forget I said anything," he muttered with a groan. "Anyway, I'll just tell you, so listen up."

"Listening," she told him with a smile as she got out her notepad. When she saw him eyeing it, she quickly told him, "Don't worry, I'll get rid of this before we go to Tundratown."

"Alright then. Now, I won't be going over the previous case files, but the final lead we have is rather large; tonight, at six PM, there is a meeting being held in a Tundratown bar named ' _The Brair_ '. It's owned and run by a polar bear named Shirokuma, who also happens to be the leader of a small gang. Fortunately, I've already spoken to Mr. Big, who is on good terms with him, and I've gained some rather helpful knowledge on Shirokuma. He said that the polar bear _loves_ money and that a small amount of hush money should allow us to sneak in and eavesdrop on Enigma's meeting."

After he finished, Judy could only sit in awe for a moment. "Wow, Nick, you've been so... _thorough_!" she told him and he had to suppress a smile. _"_ When did you even speak to Mr. Big?"

"Before dinner last night, actually. But anyway, I'm just thankful that the two are on such good terms – something to do with Biggy's bodyguard being related somehow or something..." he murmured as he trailed off. "Anyhow, we should get going."

"What, we're going there now!? It's not even noon yet!" she blurted out.

"No, I still have some things to talk to you about, but I'd rather walk around and do it," he told her and she looked at him plainly.

"You plan on us walking there because you don't have a car, right?" she asked flatly, an unamused expression on her face.

"Exactly. Then we have plenty of time to talk," he added as he began walking and Judy rolled her eyes again before following.

"Alright then," she said before she let out a sigh. "So. What do you want to discuss, specifically?"

"Ma Huang." Judy looked up at him as she tilted her head.

"The bootleg hallucinogen that's been going around?" she asked and Nick nodded.

"It's the drug that Enigma have been manufacturing and distributing around the entirety of Zootopia," he continued, causing Judy to stare ahead for a moment as she thought about it.

"That does make sense," she murmured. "Ma Huang did appear out of nowhere... but even still, that was quite some time ago. Just how long has this plan been underway?"

"Roughly a decade or so, give or take a few years. Do you know what it does to the brain?" he then asked, causing her to think again.

"I believe it over-stimulates a certain part of the brain – the part that contains memories – causing the afflicted mammal to recede into a conscious dream-like state. In essence, it basically causes them to relive memories."

"Exactly, and another chemical compound within the drug induces an endorphin to force only specific, _positive_ memories to be relived," Nick added. "And do you know how exactly that could benefit Enigma, who want predators and prey to return to the old hierarchy of life? They're trying to subconsciously recondition mammals to behave like their former primitive ancestors."

"Hmm..." Judy trailed off as she thought about it, finding what Nick said to make quite an amount of sense. "That was all in the case file?"

"Well, no, not exactly. I made that last assumption myself. It sounds rather logical to me, to be honest. What do you think?" he then asked her.

"I think that's a very reasonable assumption and you just may be right," Judy replied as she looked around at the people in the park. She smiled as she saw little ones running around, playing on the grass, and was reminded of her family in Bunnyburrow. _I should return home for a visit sometime soon,_ she thought as she continued looking around, only to let out a sigh. Then she had a sudden, arbitrary thought. "Hey, Nick, have you ever been in a relationship?"

Beside her, Nick raised a brow as he turned to her. "What makes you ask?"

"I don't know, it just kinda popped into my head," she replied, shrugging her shoulders. "It doesn't matter, you don't have to tell me if you don't want to."

"No," he murmured as they continued walking.

"That's fine, I wasn't really expecting an answer," she replied, looking ahead.

"No was my answer, Carrots," he clarified.

"Oh, right," Judy said, shaking her head of her momentary confusion.

"What about you?" Nick then asked and she shook her head again in reply.

"I never had the time; I was too focused on training and studying," she replied. "I wasn't really interested, anyway."

"What about now?" he asked and immediately regretted it. _What are you doing?_ He mentally slapped himself for his stupidity. _What if she thinks that was an oddly suspicious question? Don't get ahead of yourself._

"Oh, uh..." Judy trailed off, thinking for a moment. "I don't really know, to be honest. I hadn't really thought about it." _Don't ask why, don't ask why, don't ask why,_ Nick pleaded inside his head, realising he was tensing. "What about you?" she continued and he turned to her, trying not to make his relief visible. But then he realised her question and paused for a moment. He looked away again to avoid showing her the panic in his eyes.

"Uh, I'm not really sure yet, either," he murmured, silently letting out a sigh. "Anyway, we're almost at the gate, we can talk more about that later. For now, let's just go over the plan."

"Alright, go for it," she said.

"First, we get inside The Brair and speak to Shirokuma. We hand him his money and tell him that we're the friends Mr. Big told him about, then we just follow along with Shirokuma's way of us eavesdropping and we're golden. He did say that if we were caught, he would not help us because – just like us – Enigma are paying him some hush money for their meeting. I can't afford to miss anything, so I'll be writing things down on a small notepad, but I want you to try and remember everything by memory so that – just in case – I have to get rid of this notepad. You think you're up to it?"

"Of course. My memory's pretty decent, too," Judy told him. "Remember 29THD03?" she asked and Nick nodded.

"It's the plate number on Biggles' limo," he replied. "I have a good memory too, I just want to make sure. Anyway, enough talk now, we're at the gate. In case any member of Enigma is near, we shouldn't speak any more about the case until after we've left The Brair."

After that, the two were silent for a few moments until the bunny couldn't hold her question in any longer.

"Theoretically speaking, what do you suppose would happen if we're caught?" she asked but Nick shook his head.

"It's not going to happen."

"Nick, _theoretically._ " He let out a sigh.

"I would hope to exhaust all other options first, but I've got that revolver on me," he murmured quietly.

"And what would you do with it?" she asked and she watched as he stared ahead solemnly.

"Whatever is necessary to ensure our safety."

* * *

Nick and Judy arrived at The Brair just after midday. When they walked in, it was quiet – which wasn't unusual for the time of day for an establishment of such. _Please, let this go off without a hitch,_ Nick thought as he walked over to the bar with Judy in tow. "Afternoon, Master," he greeted the large polar bear, who was in the middle of wiping glasses dry.

"Afternoon. What can I get for you today?" he replied, discreetly looking over Nick and Judy. Nick gave a small smile.

"Anata no saikōkyūno saké de, _d_ _ō_ _mo_ _yoroshiku_ ," he told the polar bear as he prudently opened his jacket to show a large wad of cash in his pocket. The polar bear then gestured with his head over to a side door and Nick smiled as they followed him over.

"You speak Japanese?" Judy asked in a low whisper.

"That was just the passphrase Mr. Big gave me," he replied.

"But... your pronunciation was perfect?" she questioned and he just smiled.

"Well, I do suppose I'm somewhat fluent," he added quietly as they went through the side door and entered what seemed to be some sort of staff room. The polar bear stood in the centre of the room and turned, holding out his paw. Nick walked over to him and reached into his pocket, grabbing the wad of cash before promptly handing it to him.

"I'm Shirokuma," he told them. "As for my end of the deal; fortunately, you're both small enough to fit through the air vents to the room in which the meeting will take place. If you are caught, I will deny any evidence that I allowed you to do this, okay? Nothing personal." Judy and Nick nodded before he continued again. "Now, I understand you and Mr. Big are on good terms – but know this; I am a reputable mammal and as such you would do well to realise that the only reason I am allowing you to do this is because of Mr. Big. I don't sell out my... patrons, okay?"

"Don't worry, we won't say a thing," Judy replied. "We don't sell out our friends."

"Good. Now, you two are to wait out here until I come out and tell you they're here – that's when you'll climb into the ventilation over there and turn left," he told them, pointing over to the wall. "It's the first opening on the right, just take care that they don't hear you."

"No problem, we'll keep all that in mind," he told him as Shirokuma walked over to the door and began to open it. "Yorokonde, fuwatto shita," Nick added and with a smirk and the polar bear chuckled.

"Sate, anata wa airashi kitsune wa nai nodesu ne?" he replied with a smirk of his own and Judy watched as Nick's face showed an expression quite similar to the one he had when she had told him there was nothing on his tax forms.

"What did he say?" she asked him with a slight giggle.

"I'm not translating that," he muttered flatly.

"Oh, come on! Don't be a killjoy," she told him.

"No."

Judy let out a sigh, clearly irritated, as Nick smirked. "If only I knew Japanese..." she began with a sullen expression before suddenly smiling. "Oh wait. I learned it all throughout my schooling years."

"Yeah right, Carrots," he told her as she smirked.

"You don't have to believe me if you don't want to, _adorable little fox_ ," she continued, watching as Nick froze, "but I did so in the hopes of bettering myself for the force."

"Don't call me that!" he exclaimed as he crossed his arms, turning to hide his heated face.

"But you really are an adorable little fox, aren't you?" she told him with a smirk and he realised he would never hear the end of it.

"Says the cute little rabbit," he retorted and immediately he saw the exasperation on her face.

"Don't call me cute!"


End file.
